Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2013: Sec. 9 extends application deadline

Leading off today: It was a given that Section 9 would approve Poughkeepsie's application to join on Tuesday. But the day's other news was a surprise to say the least.

The Section 9 Athletic Council approved Poughkeepsie to join Section 9 and its Mid-Hudson Athletic League by a 15-0 vote on the heels of the school district's vote to leave Section 9 this week. But perhaps sensing that Poughkeepsie's move would change sentiment in other Dutchess County school districts, Section 9 also pushed back its deadline for applying for entry into the section from Nov. 30 to Dec. 31, the Poughkeepsie Journal reported.

Officials at Arlington, Beacon and Pawling told the paper there are no plans to apply this year. "We are going to take this into the summer and the fall and perhaps make another go at it," Arlington Superintendent Brendan Lyons said. Wappingers Athletic Coordinator Kurt Jesman, who previously indicated his John Jay and Roy C. Ketcham teams would not move, did not return a call for comment.

A Section 9 vote on Our Lady of Lourdes' proposed migration from Section 1 was tabled pending more discussion on the school's classification. Lourdes teams compete across three classes in Section 1.

The lacrosse jobs had been trimmed to cut $11,000 from the budget in the spring, leaving only a head coach for the varsity, JV and modified teams. The reversal almost immediately triggered questions from residents wanting to know how the savings were created, why boys lacrosse was the only sport to have spots restored and why it appears the safety of male athletes seems to take precedence over the safety of female athletes, the Cazenovia Republican reported.

After repeated pleas from lacrosse supporters at school board meetings, AD Mike Byrnes said he believed he could find the $10,000 needed to fund the positions and urged the board to reconsider.

Casting call: It looks as though the football season ended in a nick of time for Carthage quarterback Bailey Wilkinson, who showed up at his college letter of intent ceremony last week wearing casts on both arms, The Post-Standard reported.

Wilkinson broke a bone in his left hand during the first quarter of his team's 21-20 win over Indian River in the Section 3 Class A championship game Nov. 9. He then chipped a bone in the middle knuckle of his right hand during the first half of a 43-7 loss to Union-Endicott on Nov. 15 in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class A quarterfinals.

He played through both games. In fact, he engineered a 14-play, 90-yard touchdown drive in the final two minutes to rally past Indian River, capping it off by running for the TD.

"I can kinda write," Wilkinson said after signing to play lacrosse at LeMoyne College. "I put my best signature down that I could."

The injuries were the first broken bones Wilkinson has ever suffered. "I can laugh at it," he said. "It's more of an annoyance than anything.

Balance shift: Here's additional evidence that the state rule needs closer scrutiny: A year ago, there were 16 Division I and 13 Division II schools in the Section 1 hockey league. This season, there are 10 in the large-school class and 18 in the small-school class.

It's primarily the result of the narrowly passed rule that changed the way enrollments were calculated when school districts combine their sports programs. The rule was inspired by concern that some schools were faced with having to drop teams altogether because potential merger partners were scared off by potentially having to move up a class in sectional and state competition.

The Journal News cited the example of RyeTown/Harrison. 11-8-2 a year ago in Division I. Under the new formula, Harrison has to add only 30 percent of Blind Brook's and Rye Neck's enrollment numbers and comes in under the 1,100 enrollment cutoff, allowing the team to play in Division II.

There are nine combined programs in Section 1, and only Clarkstown, Lakeland/Panas and Nyack/Tappan Zee will compete with the large schools if they

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make the playoffs. Mamaroneck qualifies to play in Division II but asked to play up.

"If our enrollment was going to keep us down in Division II for a number of years, I would stay down," Tigers coach Mike Chiapparelli said. "To go back and forth doesn't really make any sense to me. Were only 12 or 13 kids under the cutoff, so its not a big deal."